Dighton native doesn’t let traumatic injury slow him down

NORTH ATTLEBORO, Mass. (WPRI) — Staff Sergeant Greg Reynolds is no ordinary gym rat.

The Dighton native and U.S. Army veteran is a true warrior who’s defied the odds.

“I say it every day. I’m just a one-armed guy in a two-armed world,” Reynolds said.

Reynolds’ life changed in the blink of an eye on June 22, 2008. He had just returned from a 15-month deployment to Iraq and was riding his motorcycle down Route 136 with a couple of friends when a driver ran a stop sign and slammed into him.

“Honestly, never in a million years did I think that I would be so tragically injured,” Reynolds said.

Reynolds suffered a traumatic brain injury and slipped into a six-week coma. He awoke without his left arm and no memory of what happened.

“I guess I’m lucky in a way because I don’t really remember what happened,” Reynolds said.

Reynolds said he was given a one in 2,000 chance of survival after losing a significant amount of blood. He ended up receiving 101 pints of blood throughout his hospital stay.

“I survived getting shot at and blown up,” Reynolds said. “Then here I am on a motorcycle and this dude takes a left-hand turn in front of me. Three seconds … that’s how quickly my life changed.”

“I thought I left death behind me. But little did I know that any day, any hour, any minute — your life can change without any warning that it’s coming,” he added.

Reynolds was forced to learn how to walk, talk, eat and exercise again. He told 12 News his rehabilitation was challenging physically and emotionally.

“I never knew what depression was until I was injured,” he said. “The life I worked to establish was taken from me.”

Now 40, Reynolds has proven that nothing is impossible.

“It wasn’t my time,” he said, referring to the crash that nearly ended his life. “I truly believe that.”

Reynolds is now a regular at the Planet Fitness in North Attleboro and broke the Guinness World Record for one-arm pushups in one minute while wearing a 40-pound pack back in May 2019.

“I’ve learned that when life knocks you down, you have to make the choice to get back up,” Reynolds said.

His motivation is rooted in a phrase he learned while serving in the military: Embrace the suck.

“I’m at the gym, I’m doing these two-arm workouts, and it sucks because I only have one arm,” Reynolds said. “But guess what? I’m doing the best I can … It’s in that moment that I’m embracing the suck.”

“I didn’t choose for this to happen to me, but these are the cards I’ve been dealt and I’m doing the best I can with the hand I’ve been given,” he continued. “Every day is a challenge, but I never thought I’d be where I am right now. It’s been an amazing journey.”

Reynolds told 12 News the man who held the previous record for one-arm pushups had two arms.

“I ended up beating him with one arm,” he said. “I did 54 pushups in one minute with 40 pounds on my back.”

Reynolds said the word “quit” isn’t in his dictionary.

“Life without limbs is limitless,” he said. “No matter what happens to you in life, you can achieve and break through those barriers that you think are in front of you, no matter how hard of a situation you may face.”

Reynolds also plays slow-pitch softball for the USA Patriots, which is a national travel team made up of wounded veterans. He’s also a motivational speaker and mentor to youth amputees through his organization Makin’ Lemonade.

Each year, Reynolds celebrates his so-called “alive day” on the anniversary of the crash.